Short Courses
Half day short courses are offered for an additional fee of EUR 50 / CZK 1250 per person and will be held on Sunday afternoon, May 19, 2024, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m.
The minimum number of participants to open each short course is 5.
1. Ion Mobility Spectrometry
Tim Causon
BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria
Course Description:
Ion mobility (IM) complements existing analytical methods as it involves millisecond-timescale separations of gas phase ions according to their structure and not only their mass. In combination with mass spectrometry, IM-MS is now a powerful technology that can be applied to very diverse analytical applications. This short course will introduce the basics of IM theory, separation principles, and the derivation of collision cross section (CCS) from IM-MS measurements. Important instrumental aspects of IM spectrometry and IM-MS technologies will be introduced, and application examples from diverse application fields (e.g., food, metabolomics, environmental analysis) shown to highlight how ion mobility be applied successfully in analytical methods.
Instructor:
Assoc. Prof. Tim Causon is an Associate Professor at Institute of Analytical Chemistry, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna (Austria). His main areas of research are liquid chromatography, molecular mass spectrometry, and ion mobility-mass spectrometry (IM-MS) addressing diverse analytical method development questions as well as fundamental studies of ionisation and properties of small molecular ions. Current research topics include applications of these analytical techniques for optimization of both upstream (e.g., microbial cell factories) and downstream (e.g., purification) ends of the bioprocessing continuum, fundamental investigations of gas-phase isomers of small molecule systems, and addressing the urgent need for harmonization of IM-MS measurement and reporting standards.Starting in 2024, he will be the co-ordinator of the MSCA Doctoral Network “MobiliTraIN” (Ion Mobility Mass Spectrometry Training Network).
2. Mass Spectrometry Imaging - CANCELLED
Jan Preisler - Antonin Bednarik
Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic
Course Description:
This course provides a comprehensive understanding of mass spectrometry imaging (MSI) principles and techniques. The most common ionization techniques involved in MSI, namely matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI), desorption electrospray (DESI), secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) and laser ablation inductively-coupled plasma (LA ICP), are reviewed. The MALDI technique is emphasized, as it presents the most widespread MSI platform. Sample preparation methods are discussed in detail, including tissue sectioning and storage, washing protocols, matrix application, and on-tissue reactions. Current instrumentation, a common data format (imzML) structure, software tools for data processing and visualization, selected applications, and the latest achievements in MSI are presented.
Instructors:
Prof. Jan Preisler is a professor of analytical chemistry at Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic. He received his Ph.D. with Ed Yeung at Iowa State University, Ames, and spent four years in the group of Barry Karger at Barnett Institute, Boston. His research interests include the development of instrumentation and methods for bioanalytical chemistry, MS imaging, time-of-flight mass spectrometers, characterization and analytical applications of nanoparticles, single-particle analysis, and development of new sample introduction techniques for inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. He pioneered the use of kHz lasers to increase the throughput of matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry in imaging applications and to detect parallel column separations.
Antonin Bednarik, Ph.D. is a postdoc researcher at Masaryk University in Brno, Czech Republic. His research activities include the development of MALDI MS and MSI instrumentation, analysis of volatile organic compounds, the development of novel MSI techniques, and applications of MSI in the analysis of nanoparticles and lipidomics. After receiving his Ph.D., he spent one year as a postdoc in the group of Klaus Dreisewerd in Münster, where he developed on-tissue Paternò Büchi derivatization protocol for MALDI MSI of lipid double bond positional isomers. He continues studying on-tissue derivatization reactions for MSI of lipid isomers and their potential in clinical applications.
3. Introduction to Miniaturization and Microfluidics
Petr Kuban - Jakub Novotny - Tomas Vaclavek - Jana Krivankova
Institute of Analytical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Brno, Czech Republic
Course Description:
The main objective of this short course is to provide the participants with an overview of the basic concepts of miniaturization and microfluidic technology. We will discuss the fundamentals of microfabrication techniques involved in manufacturing of microfluidic devices as well as what are the main benefits of utilizing such devices in analytical chemistry. In a series of lectures the participants will first gain knowledge and skills on two major techniques for fabricating microfluidic devices in glass and polymeric materials. The techniques will include glass chip fabrication techniques, such as photolithography, metal deposition, and etching. The information regarding the fabrication of plastic- and polymer-based systems, such as PDMS chips, will encompass casting and other soft lithography techniques. Eventually there will be a comprehensive lecture on 3D printing, showing 3D printing techniques, such as FDM and SLA, discussing the advantages of various printing materials, economic and sustainability aspects, etc., and showing practical examples of a 3D printed casing for a microfluidic devices. The participants will also gain knowledge on other computer-controlled methods associated with the fabrication of microfluidic devices, such as CNC micromachining. Last but not least the control of microfluidic devices with the use of Arduino microcontroller, basic programming using the IDE and examples of use of Arduino in analytical instruments will be shown. Additionally, specific applications like single-cell analysis and droplet microfluidics, and more will be discussed as a part of this course.
Instructors:
Assoc. Prof. Petr Kuban obtained his doctorate from the Department of Analytical Chemistry, Stockholm University, Sweden and spent three years as a post-doc at the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Texas Tech University, USA. Currently he is the Head of the Department of Bioanalytical Instrumentation at the Institute of Analytical Chemistry of Czech Academy of Sciences in Brno, Czech Republic. His main research interests include micro-column separation techniques such as capillary electrophoresis and HPLC, flow injection analysis, sample pretreatment and preconcentration, miniaturization, microfluidics and development of novel analytical instrumentation for clinical diagnostics.
Jakub Novotny, Ph.D. aimed his Ph.D. studies at the Institute of Analytical Chemistry (IAC) of the CAS in Brno, Czech Republic, towards the applications of microfluidics in biochemistry, with a specific emphasis on microfabrication methods. This involved the development of microfluidic devices using CNC fabrication methods (e.g. micro-milling), 3D printing, and photolithography. During his postdoctoral research in Lund, Sweden, he explored the techniques related to the field of acoustofluidics (study of the interaction of soundwaves with fluids and dispersed particles at the microscale). Now as a research assistant back at the IAC, his work continues to revolve around acoustofluidics and the development of acousto/microfluidic devices.
Tomas Vaclavek, Ph.D. has received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the Masaryk University, developing various microfluidic systems focused on single-cell manipulation, non-optical particle detection, intracellular compound isolation with subsequent analysis by mass spectrometry. His collaborations provided valuable experience with miniaturization of biosensing systems or development of microfluidic interfaces for 2D liquid separations. Currently, he develops micromachined nanospray interfaces as ion sources for highly-sensitive bioanalyses.
Jana Krivankova, Ph.D. passed her doctoral studies at the Institute of Analytical Chemistry of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Brno. Since 2016, she explored the research related to the fabrication techniques, focused on development and optimization of droplet-based microfluidic devices. Today’s research deals with application of photon-conversion nanoparticles and automation on microfluidic chips for detection of clinically relevant protein markers.